FDNY Ignores White Firefighters’ Criminal Past In Hiring

BROOKLYN, NY — White firefighters’ criminal pasts are often ignored when it comes to hiring decisions, a former New York Fire Department official said yesterday in Brooklyn Federal Court.

The sworn deposition by Patricia Kavaler, an assistant commissioner for personnel for the FDNY, was entered as evidence in a case where Black firefighters are trying to secure protection against discrimination.

In 2010, a judge ruled the FDNY must revamp its hiring practices because they discriminated against Blacks.

“This is ‘boys being boys,'” Kavaler said in describing the calls from firefighters vouching for the candidates. “That sort of thing.”